There’s the cliché advice, “don’t judge a book by its cover.” While that is good advice, few people heed it. The fact is, most people will judge a book by its cover. If you are an author and want people to buy your book, you better put a good cover on it. Choosing a good […]
Is AI Good Enough for Minimum Wage?
The COVID pandemic has changed many aspects of our work and culture. The shift toward remote online work has accelerated. People are reexamining what they do to make money, and how much money they need to make to earn a living. Many people who were on the brink of retirement retired earlier than they had […]
All-Female Taxi Service
A big concern among users of Uber, Lyft, and taxis in general is safety. Passengers have to trust a stranger to drive them to their destination. Some situations—particularly a single female passenger being picked up by a male stranger late at night—seem especially risky. This problem may be solved by an all-female taxi service. Female […]
The Smartest Person in the World
What would the smartest person in the world be like? I imagine that person would be very quiet and keep to themselves. A truly wealthy person does not flaunt wealth. A truly great athlete does not brag about their abilities. What would be the point? I look at people thirty years older than myself. They […]
Computing Power of the Masses
The universe is a massive, perhaps infinite, expanse and our entire galaxy is but a speck in a void sprinkled with thousands of galaxies. Even if you only consider our own galaxy, the Milky Way, our solar system is just one in an estimated 100,000,000,000 other solar systems in the galaxy. There are probably over […]
The 80/20 of Languages
If you’re reading this blog post, there’s a good chance that you’re living in a predominantly English-speaking country (I’d say, an 80%+ chance). According to Wikipedia, the Pareto principle states that “for many outcomes, roughly 80% of consequences come from 20% of the causes (the “vital few”).” That is to say, for most things you encounter […]